Scope and Contents of the Materials

One folder containing a program from the funeral service for Violet Haas.

Biographical Note

Violet Haas was born in Brooklyn, New York in 1926. She received a bachelor’s degree from Brooklyn College in 1947. Haas later matriculated at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology where she received her Master’s degree in 1949 and her PhD in 1951, both of which were in mathematics. While at MIT, Violet was introduced to her future husband, Felix. After school, Haas taught at the University of Connecticut, Wayne State University, and the University of Detroit. She came to Purdue University in 1962, where she joined the faculty as an assistant professor in the College of Electrical Engineering and Computing Engineering. By 1977 she had become a full professor of Electrical Engineering and had published numerous scholarly articles in the areas of optimal control, nonlinear control, and optimal estimation. Haas also garnered numerous awards for her research and teaching excellence, including the National Science Foundation Science Faculty Fellowhip, the A.A.U.W. Vassie James Hill Fellowship, the D.D. Ewing Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching, and the Helen B. Schleman Gold Medallion Award. In addition, Haas served as a role model and counselor to many female students. She and fellow professor Carolyn Perrucci co-edited a book entitled Women in Scientific and Engineering Professions in 1984. Haas continued to work at Purdue until her death in 1986. The Council on the Status of Women established the Violet B. Haas award in her honor in 1990 to recognize individuals who have helped to promote the status of women at Purdue.